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TFV-D187
The TFV-D187 "Scarab" was a tracked infantry fighting vehicle in use with the FFEL during the Servan Independence War, Ishamsho-Polaris War, and the Alliance War. The name means 'Tracked Fighting Vehicle Designation Year 187' but in common lingo it is referred to as the Scarab. History The very successful prior fighting vehicle designs were built based on requirements for a easy-to-manufacture all-terrain vehicle with a low profile and a high carrying capacity for cargo and personnel with modular combat integration capabilities. The scarab was the latest generation of such vehicles during the last quarter of the 24th century. As per United Armada designations, there were always to be four types of specialized fighting vehicles in service at any one time: wheeled, tracked, amphibious, and drop-ship portable. The Scarab was the tracked vehicle of that generation. Commissioned in Year 185, numerous designs and prototypes were submitted, but in the end the Scarab print was chosen for its versatility after a great deal of field tests and theoretical examinations. Usage in Combat General Properties and Features The D187 typically has a driver and a weapons operator, and seats 10 passengers, a full Infantry squad of legionnaires in its armoured section. It can be reasonably expected to carry a payload of 6.8 tons without the passengers, but its low profile means that the actual volume of space available for cargo is relatively small and therefore largely unsuitable as a primary logistical vehicle. Like most fighting vehicles the D187 has a high degree of air-mobility, but tends to be excessively heavy for use in dropships, limiting its range of deployment in a planetary assault. However if brought to the ground by heavier shuttles, it can be deployed in large numbers along with their infantry squads. As a tracked vehicle, the Scarab was the prime vehicle for close-combat. Modular System 5 variants serve with the FFEL, however there is a large number of possible configurations made possible by its Integrated Modular System. Meaning that a single formation of D187s can effectively serve simultaneously in troop carriers, light cargo transports, armoured ambulances, tank destroyers, heavy artillery towers, anti-aircraft platforms, light artillery, fast attack, engineer vehicle, command vehicle, equipment fabricators, and armoured assault roles. Other modules allow for increased towing and cargo capacity, turbochargers for its methanol engines, supplemental heavy armour, and specific life-support enhancements and improved defenses against radiation, chemical, electronic, and biological warfare, and other modifications specific to increasing durability in hostile planetary environments such as extreme heat/cold and high pressure. The Modular System would be used in every vehicle design afterwards. It allowed vehicles to completely change role on the fly - in the midst of a battle it became possible to adapt to any adverse condition within minutes at most, and this contributed greatly to FFEL war-fighting doctrine of independent maniples. A module had 3 'slots' which could be used to fit new armament, new armour, or new utilities with ease. Fabricator vehicles, equipped with blueprints and a 3D printer along with a squad of technicians, could literally make any needed equipment on the spot, meaning there was no limit to the module system's capabilities. Attempts to apply the modular concept to starships also came to fruition in the latter half of the 25th century, though these human attempts were met with less success than those of the Ancient Madapari. Variants Despite the module system and the versatility it gave, updated variants of the D187 would come to exist in response to newly-required demands. The TFV-D187-I (I for Improved), and TFV-D187-M (M for Modernized) and TFV-D187-M/I (Modernized/Improved) would be the most important variants, as they incrementally increased the engine's power and reliability, as well as updates to the module system in order to allow more and more modern equipment to be mounted. In response to the additional power, the vehicle often received heavier armour, up to 30% more in some cases. Armament The standard, no-frills Scarab straight from the factory comes with a twin-linked pair of 12.7mm heavy coilguns mounted in a rotating turret and two pairs of light grenade-launchers capable of firing incendiary, fragmentation, and high-explosive 40mm grenades along with smoke canisters, along with firing ports so that its passengers can make use of their personal arms. This type of Scarab was the most common to be deployed in battle though it often took advantage of the Scarab's module system to be fitted with heavier armament. The heavy coilgun may be replaced by dual 20mm autocannons, a fully-automatic grenade launcher, or even a 76mm coil-cannon, or equivalent-power laser weapons. A specialized weapon mount module supports use of a heavy mortar, allowing the vehicle to act as light artillery with a range of 20 km with the ability to fire over hills and other obstacles with great precision and accuracy, especially with correction from other units in line-of-sight with the target. It also allows for anti-tank, RADAR-based anti-aircraft missiles, or Infrared-based anti-gunship missiles to be used as well as granting access to mine-laying as well as mine-sweeping capability. Category:Vehicle